are you a vegetarian - then read this

meat is meat and a man must eat. i say. had an interesting argument a day or two ago. about vegetarians. with vegetarians. i asked them why. did you know that most vegetarians eat fish. i though that was a meat. i say. the most common answer they give is the cruelty to animals thing. it is inhumane to eat animals that suffered. that was handled in a cruel way. that live under terrible conditions only for man to slaugther and feast. well. i say. they might have a point. but. i ask. if the inhumane thing is the issue. what about child labour i ask. do they wear clothes and brand made and crafted at the hand of an innocent child. your leather handbag madam. stamped by the small feet of a little boy or girl. the perfect close stiching on your most expensive shoes. done by small hands. which is worse i ask. silence. no reply. which is worse i ask. the little boy has a soul. the animal does not. which is worse madam. the child or the animal. had you said you dont like the taste of meat you would have been safe. but no. you opted for door two because you thought it would be the stronger argument. wrong. i ask. which is worse. child versus animal. you chew on that and let me know. me. i dont like meat that much. but i have my reasons the right way round though.

why wine

people have asked me why i love wine so much. it is an easy answer. but also difficult. it depends what you wanna know. i guess it starts at home. my dad being a winemaker and all. so wine has never been a vague concept to me. i grew up with it. over time i developed a sense of appreciation. the drink of the gods. who would not be interested. every bottle a masterpiece. a work of art. time. effort. passion. thought. perseverence. that is what it takes. sometimes more of the one. less of the other. but i think my main reason for loving this product is because i believe what you drink says something about you. it is an expression of who you are. whether you are willing to spend a lot of money on good quality. or not. wines for every occasion. it tells a story. it creates a story. it is a story. every wine has a personality. a sense of direction. an age. a lifecycle. a time to live. and a time when it lives no more. it hass so many faces. many smells. many tastes. layers and layers waiting to be discovered. are you willing to discover. discover with your senses. discover the reality of taste. smell. and the sensation of cream. soft velvet running down your throat. the seduction the bubbles of champagne brings. the genre of loving with a velvety red infront of a cracking fire. a crisp white to refresh after a long sunny day. wine for summer. wine for winter. wine with food. wine by itelf. wine in food. wine that is serious. wine that is playful. wine that wants to impress. wine that just wants to be. wine that wants to be paraded. wine that only wants to be drunk. so lets us raise our glasses and solute a friend. a confident. sante.

roundtrip to nowhere

it was a hot day in the med. we got up later than planned. we got on the train. it went in the wrong direction. we wanted to go elsewhere. so we ended up changing our plans. direction beach. so it was a day of jumping from train to train and bus to bus. eventually made it to the beach. only to realise that the bus for home leaves in five mintues. it was a frustrating day but good none the less. saw little. but had fun watching the two colombians. they are crazy. funny. passionate. good people.

what happens next

i am excited about what lies ahead. the next few weeks are going to be excellent. for the following reasons. i have five weeks left at the language school. then off to supagro. the world cup comes to town. corrida season peaks in nimes. that is bullfighting for those that dont know. my parents are coming to europe for their annual stint in portugal. i am off to paris to walk the street that papi hemingway did. to go and buy a moveable feast at shakespear and co. to see if i can find closerie de lilas. i hope it still exists. and i have a weekend in valencia too that has to happen. so there is lots to be done. no time to waist. watch this space.

holiday fever

it has finally left me. after two months it is gone. perhaps because everybody else is gone. i have said good bye to twenty six friends in four weeks. the northerners have gone back home. the students are on their way back. the streets are empty. the building and reparations are continuing. life is returning to normal. the pace has settled down. less street cafes that stay open till late. the number of umbrellas seem less. and the waiters are friendlier. as if they know that the tourists have all gone home. i am getting use to walking past the epicerie de nuit and being greeted with a bon soir. or when sitting down on a friday afternoon. being served as a regular. pastis monsieur. holiday fever is gone. the chef has arrived.

change of season

the winds of change are dancing the streets of montpellier. people come. people go. i have said good bye to more than twenty people in the last three weeks. the gang is no more. steve and i were the last. now. i remain the last man standing. friends change. new emails. new phone numbers. the black book is doing its work. working overtime. its good. people form all over. people from different demographics. it keeps me sharp. i keep me interested. i keeps me intrigued. i keeps me. so this is to all of you that have come and gone. we will see one another soon i guess. perhaps amsterdam. perhaps in spain. but definitely in sa. two thousand and ten. a tribute to all that has made it unto this blog. your are the class of o seven. salut.

french medical

have you had bad experiences at a doctor. i recall that horrible day in grade one when the big bad docter inspected my crown jewels. stripped down to my tighty whities. i was scared speechless. but i guess that was one of those things. the days of polio and diseases. all had to be checked and inspected. it was the norm. that does not change the seriousness of scary. today i had one more of these. but the french way. for my visa. the pain i had to suffer for three years of fun in the sun. i guess a price worth paying. five minutes in exchange for three years sounds like a good deal right. wrong. the indignation is priceless. it just plain sucks. what for i ask. what do they see. what do they detect in my five minutes of utter hell. i feel like that boy in grade one again.